The ground-breaking ceremony of EcoPro BM’s cathode material plant in Debrecen, Hungary, indicates that the 728 million euros project of the South Korean company is going according to plan. The investment will allow the manufacturing of 108,000 tonnes cathode material for lithium-ion batteries on a yearly basis and 631 jobs will be created.
Announced in December 2021, EcoPro BM’s investment is the largest one after BMW’s iFactory, which is now under construction and CATL’s future gigafactory in Debrecen and due to its scale it is expected to significantly contribute to the development of the local EV ecosystem.
The Korean company pioneered the production of the nickel-based cathode in its homeland and aims to propel Korea to become a global battery superpower. Its first European plant in Hungary serves this purpose as well.
The Debrecen plant broke ground after all necessary permits had been granted and related preparatory works had started.
South Korea brought the most FDI to Hungary in 2019, 2021 and 2022 and by now it forms the 4th largest investor community. These projects, the bulk of which are e-mobility related, account for a total investment volume of 9.8 billion euros and nearly 15,000 new jobs for the Hungarian economy.
